Information for the Easy Breezy Wedding Planner

and Wedding Planning Tips

Easy Breezy Wedding Help Guide

Workbook information and Wedding Planning Tips

A Brief Introduction
Thank you so much for purchasing the Easy Breezy Wedding Planner!
I truly hope that you find the workbook to be useful and helpful in planning for your big day.
Ive created this simple guide for you with a bit of fun, lightheartedness and also some of my
strange gay humorto put a smile on your face!
I know that probably from the time you were a little girl you were planning for and dreaming of
the perfect weddingfrom the dress, to the cake, to the bridesmaids and of course, that perfect
man that would sweep you off your feet so you could ride off into the sunset together. Trust
meI was there too girl! I had Barbie dolls and even Cher dolls and dressed them up in those
miniature wedding gowns and they got to have complete ceremonies and receptions right in the
backyard, many times! Word of caution: dont try flushing your wedding gown down the
toiletmy friend Jessica and I did that with one of Barbies wedding gowns and it clogged the
darn thing up! My father wasnt too thrilled when he came home from work and had to plunge
the toilet. But Im sure you werent planning on doing that anyway.right????
Even the simplest of weddings can be a lot of work, which I learned when my partner and I
decided to have a Commitment Ceremony in 2009. I couldnt have done it without the help of
my very supportive mother. We had it at my parents house, which was at the request of my
father who was battling cancer and wanted such a great celebration to be celebrated right in his
backyard. It was a beautiful day and everything was perfect!
But this isnt about my weddingthis is about yours! Youve got so much to plan for and even
betterso much to look forward to! Youre going to be beautiful and all eyes will be upon you
on that magical day. There is no reason why it shouldnt come off without a hitch if you plan
things plenty of time in advance and with the right knowledge and tools.
This isnt meant to be the ultimate wedding planning guide, but Ive done much extensive
research to offer you advice and tips to help you along. First, you can review details about the
workbook and how to use it. You will find these to be very simple instructions without a lot of
techie mumbo jumbo. Just the basics!
Following that are the tips and suggestions for planning your wedding. Within that portion of the
guide, you will find that there are pages of questions that you can ask the various potential
wedding vendors, with spaces where you can write down the answers. The more you know, the
better off youre going to be!
Enjoy and again, thank you!

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Easy Breezy Wedding Help Guide

Workbook information and Wedding Planning Tips

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2012 Mark Thaler Creations

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Easy Breezy Wedding Help Guide

Workbook information and Wedding Planning Tips

Contents
A Brief Introduction ............................................................................................................ 2
The Workbook: Just A Little Info. ..................................................................................... 6
Getting Around the Workbook ....................................................................................... 6
Using the Worksheets ..................................................................................................... 7
Auto-Calculating Worksheets ......................................................................................... 8
Auto-Fill Cells in Worksheets ...................................................................................... 11
Printing the Worksheets ................................................................................................ 11
Removing Worksheet Protection .................................................................................. 12
The Payment Worksheets ......................................................................................... 13
Tips for Planning a Green Wedding .............................................................................. 15
Invitations and Mailed Paper Items .............................................................................. 15
The Wedding Rings ...................................................................................................... 15
Planning the Wedding ................................................................................................... 16
For The Wedding Party................................................................................................. 17
Wedding Favors and Centerpieces................................................................................ 17
Your Wedding Gown .................................................................................................... 17
Photography .................................................................................................................. 18
Catering, Food, and Beverages ..................................................................................... 18
Plates & Utensils ........................................................................................................... 18
Flowers & Decorations ................................................................................................. 19
Gifts............................................................................................................................... 19
Miscellaneous Tips ....................................................................................................... 20
Tips for Planning Your Wedding...................................................................................... 21
Pre-Wedding Must-Dos ........................................................................................... 21
Choosing the Right Venue ........................................................................................ 24
Questions To Ask a Reception Location .................................................................. 25
Saving Money on Your Reception ............................................................................ 31
Rentals For Your Reception...................................................................................... 32
Planning Your Wedding Cake .................................................................................. 34
Questions To Ask a Bakery ...................................................................................... 35
Girl Where Did You Get That Dress??? ................................................................... 40
Sometimes Its All About The Hair! ......................................................................... 41
Responsible People Do Responsible Things............................................................. 45
Choosing A Caterer................................................................................................... 48
Questions to Ask a Catering Company ..................................................................... 50
Choosing a Wedding DJ ........................................................................................... 58
Questions To Ask A Disc Jockey (DJ) ..................................................................... 60
Choosing a Band for Your Wedding ........................................................................ 65
Questions to Ask A Band, Band Agent or Booking Manager .................................. 66
Dressing Up Your Bridesmaids ................................................................................ 71
Choosing Your Transportation Company ................................................................. 74
Questions to Ask a Wedding Transportation Company ........................................... 77

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Workbook information and Wedding Planning Tips

Choosing Your Wedding Florist ............................................................................... 82

Questions to Ask a Wedding Florist ......................................................................... 83
Choosing Your Wedding Photographer .................................................................... 86
Questions to Ask a Wedding Photographer .............................................................. 87
Choosing Your Wedding Videographer ................................................................... 92
Questions To Ask A Wedding Videographer ........................................................... 94
Planning Your Wedding Stationery .......................................................................... 98
Questions to Ask A Wedding Stationer .................................................................. 102
A Wedding Glossary of Terms ................................................................................... 106
Wedding Cake ......................................................................................................... 106
Invitations ............................................................................................................... 107
Photography ............................................................................................................ 110
Reception Service Styles......................................................................................... 111
More Wedding Terms ............................................................................................. 112
Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 116
A Partial Index ............................................................................................................ 117

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Easy Breezy Wedding Help Guide

Workbook information and Wedding Planning Tips

The Workbook: Just A Little Info.

Getting Around the Workbook
Below is a picture of the Main Menu for the workbook. This is your starting point.
#1 shows where you enter the Bride and Groom names, which will be useful when in
your worksheets. #2 shows where you enter the date of your wedding. Once you enter
the date of your wedding, a countdown of days leading up to your wedding will appear in
the space just below. #3 shows you the Main Menus list of options. Each item
underlined and in blue are links to sub-menus. If you do not wish to use the sub-menus
and would like to see a list of all worksheets in alphabetical order, click on the
Alphabetical Menu of All Worksheets link, as shown in #4

The next image is of the Bride and Groom Worksheets sub-menu. In this menu, you will
see several worksheet options to choose from. Simply click on the appropriate link and
you will be taken to that worksheet.

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Workbook information and Wedding Planning Tips

Next, lets say youve gone to the Bridal Beauty Hairstyle Worksheet, but now you wish
to go back to the Main Menu. All you have to do in any worksheet to return to the Main
Menu is click the Easy Breezy Wedding Planner Logo, as seen in the image below.

Using the Worksheets

You can enter information into the worksheets easily by pressing your [Tab] key to move
from one field to the next. Fields marked with a ** in them indicates that it has a dropdown list of choices. You simply click on the down arrow to the right of the cell and then
make your selection from the list. In most cases, you may also enter alternate answers in
case yours is not in the list. See the image below as an example.

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Easy Breezy Wedding Help Guide

Workbook information and Wedding Planning Tips

A few of the worksheets have image options, such as the Bridal Salon Worksheet, where
you can replace the default images with your own pictures of wedding dresses you like
and also your final choice. All you do is right-click on one of the default images (as
shown below in #1) and select Change Picture. Next, go to the folder where you have
the desired photo(s) stored (as shown in #2), click the image you would like and then
click the Insert button. The default image has now been replaced with your own! (As
shown in #3)

Auto-Calculating Worksheets
Many worksheets have cells that auto-calculate for you, such as currency, dates, times
and general number counts.

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Easy Breezy Wedding Help Guide

Workbook information and Wedding Planning Tips

The example below is a currency calculation which shows you that when you enter a
Starting Budget (the amount you have to spend on your entire wedding), your budget
amount for each aspect of your wedding will automatically calculate based on the
percentage to the left of it. You can always change the percentages to suit your needs.

The next example shown below is of an automatic date calculation. Because you entered
the date of your wedding in the appropriate spaces in the Main Menu (June 15, 2014 is
the example date entered), it automatically appears at the top of this worksheet. The
dates for each set of months also automatically calculate, so you won't have to figure out
when those tasks need to take place.

The next example is of an automatic time calculation. The example below is for the
Bride's Wedding Day Planner. Initially, the time is 12:00 AM. This cell is a drop-down
list, so when you select the time you are planning to start your day on the day of your
wedding, it will automatically calculate the hours that follow, in 15-minute intervals.

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Easy Breezy Wedding Help Guide

Workbook information and Wedding Planning Tips

A final example of an automatic calculation is shown on the right in the Guest RSVP list
for a sit-down meal. Names can be selected from a drop-down list based on names you
enter into the Guest List worksheet. (Example 1, below).

Next, select "Y" or "N" from the list in the next cell. When you select "Y" for "Yes", it
will add one person to the overall count, where it says "Total Number Attending".
(Example 2, below)

And finally, you will want to choose their meal selection from the drop-down list. Let's
say Jane is having the chicken. From the drop-down list you will want to select
"Poultry". Now that this has been selected, you will notice that in the "Meal Option
Count" above, a number 1 has appeared. (Example 3, below) For each person's meal
selection you add, one more will be added to the count. This will make things easier
when it comes time to give your caterer meal counts before the wedding.

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